Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Being a fireman at $1,200 a year is a better job than playing baseball with a major league at $2,000 or $2,500 a year, Frank Mace, fireman, says. Representatives of the Cleveland and Detroit clubs in the American league, Kansas City in the American association, and Montreal in the International league, have been heckling Mace several weeks to sign a contract.

“The fire department is good enough for me,” Mace declared. “But these clubs have been bothering me so much to sign up that they induced me to leave the city to talk it over.”

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I remember being 7 years old in 1977, and John Mayberry having a 3-HR day against my newly-beloved Blue Jays. When Toronto got him the next season, I was sure that he would lead them to a championship! Although that never happened, he showed up at an Etobicoke tyke league game I was playing in 1980, and signed autographs for all us kids after the game. Still my first favourite player (outside of Jackie Robinson; when the Jays came into being I devoured every baseball book I could find, and Jackie became my hero. Conversely, I hated the Yankees because they kept beating the Dodgers in the '40s and '50s. Lou Gehrig was the only pinstriper I read about that I didn't despise. Ah, to be a kid again!)

Governor John L. McKeithin led a 30-man delegation from Louisiana that made a formal presentation to the American League for the Indians to play 30 of their home games in ther Superdome at New Orleans in 1974.

"The group made a fine presentation and we're appointing a committee to look into the main details before the league makes a determination," said American League Prsident Joe Cronin.

Opposition was heard from Charlie O. Finley, who moved his Athletics from Kansas City to Oakland in 1968. Finley contended that Cleveland Owner Vernon Stouffer would, in effect, be controlling two cities.

I have no stance on Buddy Carlyle, other than noting that it's tremendous that his name is Earl Lester Carlyle, and that I like the idea of Quad-A players who keep playing as long as they can find someone to pay them.

Obviously Carlyle loves to play baseball, because there's no other reason to bounce between Buffalo, Albuquerque, and Richmond while making $40K a year.